Thanksgiving Tabletop: A Study in Indigo

My idea of Thanksgiving tabletop styling heaven would be to swing open the porch door, clippers in hand, and head outdoors to snip branches and brambles for a woodland-inspired design.

But in reality? I live in Brooklyn, and for garden greenery I head to New York City’s finest bodega flower shops. The good news is it’s still possible to put together a Thanksgiving tabletop that looks as if it’s straight from the garden:

Above: For Thanksgiving, I want to eschew all of the rusts and golds and oranges in favor of subtler hues of green and white and blue. To keep fussiness to a minimum, I’ll bundle sets of vintage flatware with linen napkins, do away with place mats, choose tiny cloth coasters to offset wine glasses, and make miniature bouquets from grocery store greens.

Above: I found light indigo colored napkins for $10 apiece in the newly redone basement shop at ABC Carpet & Home in Manhattan. Similar Indigo Blue Linen Napkins are available from Maalikaa Creations on Etsy; $19.20 each.

Above: Instead of using place mats or a tablecloth, I decided on cloth coasters from the Fog Linen Shop. A similar set of six Navy Seersucker Coasters is $30 from Shop Fog Linen.

Above: For the greens, I chose seeded eucalyptus, rosemary, hypericum, all purchased from a local grocery store. In short, squat vessels, the tiny arrangements add spots of greenery to each setting, without crowding the table. For similar glasses, see 10 Easy Pieces: Basic Drinking Glasses.

Above: I used a set of vintage silverware, tied in jute bundles around my napkin.